2 comments on “Stuff Said 038: Skottie Young”

so… yet again a REALLY great episode!
I honestly find Skottie Young to be one of the most entertaining creators out there in interviews. he always keeps the conversation interesting.
I found this particular episode to be very inspiring specifically around the middle when you two begin to think and discuss on the topics of motivations, and viewing projects as real or not and the comic book equivalent of hearing your own voice on a recording.

I’m going through this very thing right now as I try to finish a couple of works to submit to editors at ECCC and later.
I’ve been in a real low place for about a month between being rendered to near complete exhaustion by my day job and just being completely discouraged by my years of self publishing and now trying to get these published “legit” and feeling like I won’t be excepted because maybe my stories aren’t witty enough or something.
it’s hard to tell exactly what the fear is, but i think a big part of it stems from years of thinking my self published work wasn’t legitimate simply because i don’t make a living at it.

anyway, it was a great episode and really lit a new fire under me. I just thought I should take the time out from working on pages to say thanks to both you and Skottie for recording this and to you Gregg for posting it and continuing to make a great show.

Thanks Solomon, and I’ll pass along your kind words to Skottie, who is a lot of fun to talk to, though I still think we can both get ourselves into “trouble” by doing so much talking…unless there were a way to make money just talking, but there’s not much demand for on-air radio comics talk…and even then, who says radio makes any money!?!

Digressions aside, self-publishing is legit. Period. In the relatively small word of mainstream/direct market comics it’s almost too easy to feel like you don’t rate or count, but the fact is, and this has been true for MANY years: there are only so many comics with Spider-Man or Batman in them (even when there are many) and only so many people who “get to” write/pencil/ink/color/letter/edit them. If that’s the measure of legit, that means there’s what, 25 legit comic makers…and a bunch of has-beens and never-weres? No way. By that measure drawing SPONGEBOB COMICS or OZ comics wouldn’t be “legit”.

One of my most downloaded episodes is the one with Brad Guigar, who does his own webcomic. He’s worked to make it successful (for him) and his episode has more downloads than the episode with Dan Slott, beloved/controversial writer of SPIDER-MAN. Is one more legit than the other? Not that this show is any indicator, but it tells me that legit has other metrics. It all depends on what you’re goal is. If it’s “I want to write and draw the X-Men monthly or I want to get rich making comics”, those are exponentially harder to achieve than “I have a story to tell and I’m going to tell it to whoever’s willing to read it.”

Even a goal like “I want to make money making comics” isn’t a guarantee. A lot of folks never make a dime making comics. It’s unfortunate, but that’s the reality. It might interest you to read this blog post by cartoonist Faith Erin Hicks: http://www.friendswithboys.com/2012/01/page-175/. It’s really eye opening and sheds a light on some financial realities, and Faith is as legit as they come.

There’s a really interesting conversation coming in an episode later in the year where this question of what makes a cartoonist a “real” cartoonist comes up, and it’s a good exchange.

I can’t hire you or get you any work, but I will be at ECCC if you want to stop by and say hello! Thanks again for listening!